The Pros And Cons Of The American Education System

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The United States of America has a long history of success, including everything from the Revolutionary War to World War 2. Just as America has evolved, other countries have as well, becoming more focused on education unlike America. While the American education system has some obvious merits, there are also some significant flaws. The recent PISA scores are an excellent example of the lack of progress in the American education system. The Program for International Student Assessment otherwise known as PISA is an international assessment that measures 15-year-old students' real world problem solving in reading, mathematics, and science literacy on a scale of a 1000 point scale. PISA is administered every three years by the Organization for …show more content…
The tests lasted for 2 hours, and had a mixture of open-ended and multiple-choice questions that are organized into different categories. A total of about 390 minutes of test items are covered. Each student takes a different combination of different tests to assure that a broad type of questions are able to be answered in the amount of time that is given. The school's principal is also required to answer questions of the students' background, schools, and learning environment. The test design and data analysis are delegated to an international association of research and educational institutions led by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) where the tests are also scored. The scores are then released to the public, where each country is scored and compared to one …show more content…
Finland's educational system is done very differently from the U.S, they spend less money per student, have almost no homework, and only have one standardized test when they are 16, natheless, they perform with the top nations on international standardized tests. Finland places all students together in small classrooms of only 16 students. There are no advanced classes and no remedial classes. Those who need more help however are given more attention so that they can continue on successfully. Teachers work hard to ensure the wellbeing of their students and are upheld with the same respect as doctors and lawyers. Only the top 10% of graduates are even able to be accepted into teacher training programs, and all teachers are required to have at least a bachelor's degree. Teacher enabled tests are only given to view students’ progress and are not graded or compared. Finnish educational authorities reformed their schools so students would use their knowledge later in life. Schools in Finland make sure kids have a wide variety of classes that aren’t exactly academic, as well as additional time during lunch for athletics and clubs. “Academics isn’t all kids need. Kids need so much more. School should be where we teach the meaning of life; where kids learn they are needed; where they can learn community

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